H. G. Wells | Lecturia

H. G. Wells: The Triumphs of a Taxidermist

“The Triumphs of a Taxidermist” is a short story by H. G. Wells, published on March 3, 1894, in the Pall Mall Gazette and collected in the book The Stolen Bacillus and Other Incidents (1895). The story takes place in the small, messy home of an eccentric taxidermist who, between glasses of whiskey, enthusiastically reveals his trade secrets. With a sarcastic and provocative tone, he describes his most unusual achievements: from faking extinct birds to inventing non-existent species. The story, laden with black humor, pokes fun at scientific credulity and the obsession with collecting curiosities.

H. G. Wells: The Valley of Spiders

“The Valley of Spiders” is a short story by H. G. Wells, published in March 1903 in Pearson’s Magazine. It tells the story of three horse riders who are pursued across an inhospitable landscape, searching for a pair of fugitives. After several days of marching through a barren and lonely landscape, the men enter a wide, silent valley that appears uninhabited but soon senses an unsettling presence. As the wind intensifies, an unexpected threat emerges from the sky, transforming the hunt into a struggle for survival in an increasingly hostile environment.

H. G. Wells: In the Avu Observatory

“In the Avu Observatory” is a short story by H. G. Wells, published on August 9, 1894, in the Pall Mall Budget magazine. Set in a remote astronomical station in the jungles of Borneo, it narrates the disturbing experience of Woodhouse, a young assistant who is left alone in the observatory while he makes stellar observations. The tranquility of the tropical night, with its distant sounds and the vast darkness of the forest, is transformed into an atmosphere charged with tension and uncertainty when an unknown presence bursts into the enclosure.

H. G. Wells: The Flowering of the Strange Orchid

The Flowering of the Strange Orchid is a short story by H. G. Wells, first published on August 2, 1894, in Pall Mall Budget. The story follows Winter-Wedderburn, a quiet and solitary man who finds excitement in his hobby of cultivating exotic orchids. One day, he acquires a strange plant collected from remote regions, which awakens in him a sense of mystery. Fascinated by its unusual growth, he spends his days tending to the greenhouse, unaware that the orchid holds more than just beauty. The tale blends the ordinary with the unsettling, drawing the reader into an atmosphere of growing suspense.

H. G. Wells: The Magic Shop

The Magic Shop is a story by H.G. Wells, published in 1903, that transports us to a place full of mysteries and surprises. A father, accompanied by his son Gip, enters an ordinary magic shop that reveals itself as an enchanted space where the amazing comes to life. Crystal balls that materialize out of nowhere mirrors that distort reality, and doors that appear and disappear create an atmosphere that oscillates between the wonderful and the disturbing. The fine line between fantasy and reality is completely blurred in this magical bazaar.

H. G. Wells: The Door in the Wall

“The Door in the Wall,” a story by H.G. Wells published in The Daily Chronicle in 1906, tells the story of Lionel Wallace, a man who, as a child, discovers a mysterious door in a wall that promises to lead him to a place of extraordinary beauty and serenity. Throughout his life, the door reappears before his eyes on several occasions. However, the obligations of everyday life always prevent Wallace from escaping to that world of magic where he knows he will be happy. The narrative, full of mystery and symbolism, delves into the permanent human conflict between the satisfaction of daily duties and ambitions and the desire to escape where life can be lived in peace and tranquillity.